michelles_book_nook's reviews
252 reviews

The Way it is Now by Garry Disher

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dark mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

⚠️ TW: murder, xenophobia, rape, victim blaming, harassment, mental health ⚠️ Despite this being an easy read it just wasn't for me unfortunately. This book follows Charlie Deravin and his family whose mother, Rose, went missing 20 years ago and even though her body was never found she was believed to have been murdered. As this dark tragedy hung over the family things only got darker as people continued to throw suspicion on his father, Rhys. Now 20 years on that suspicion is still looming as strong as ever as Charlie returns to his coastal hometown in Australia whilst he is on disciplinary leave from his job with the police sex-crimes unit, and permanent leave from his marriage. And after two decades of examing the mystery of his mother, he's run out of leads. Then the skeletal remains of two people are found and the past comes crashing back. This book is an easy read, slow burner crime procedural novel that takes you on the journey of Charlie re-examing his mother's disappearance as he has to come to terms with unanswered questions and dead ends as well as new evidence and information that sends him on a rabbit hunt whilst also trying to keep his job and career intact. However, I didn't really enjoy it unfortunately for a number of reasons. Firstly, I struggled with the amount of characters because there were so many that in parts it got quite confusing. Also, I just found it to be too slow and it didn't feel like it had any big reveal moments to make it worthwhile. And finally, the main timeline of the story is set in late 2019 to early 2020 when c*vid was beginning to spread and I really hated that it was referred to as 'that Chinese virus' multiple times. Overall, this was an easy read but not for me unfortunately 🙈
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I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

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challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

⚠️ TW: parental death, fatphobia, dieting, anorexia, gaslighting, manipulation, domestic violence, physical abuse, mental abuse, mental health, grooming, body dysmorphia, binge eating, bulimia, alcoholism, drug use ⚠️ Wow this book was one hell of an emotional rollercoaster that just kept astonishing me at every single chapter! This book is a memoir from Jenette McCurdy, one of the main characters from the popular 2007 Nickelodeon show iCarly, about her life and upbringing in acting as well as her relationship with her Mom, Debra, both during her life and after her death. Jennette was 6 years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. She went along with heavily calorie restricted diets and weighing herself five times a day. She endured so much manipulative and gas lighting abuse from her Mom where she would go along with anything just for her love and approval but it never seemed enough. Even to the extent that she was showered by her Mom until age sixteen, sometimes even alongside her older brother, while sharing her diaries, emails and all of her income. This book is so harrowing to read but also darkly hilarious as Jenette uses humour throughout to discuss the events she went through after discovering therapy and quitting acting as she now embarks on recovery and for the first time in her life gets to make decisions truly for herself. Overall, I highly recommend giving this one a read but please take the TW's into account because it is a very hard read.
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I Was Born for This by Alice Oseman

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

⚠️ TW: alcoholism, assault, mental health, suicidal ideations ⚠️ If you're looking for a seemingly cute YA read with a much deeper meaning then this one is definitely for you! This book follows Angel, a life long fan of the world renowned teenage boy band called The Ark, and Jimmy, The Ark's frontman, as they end up on an unexpected whirlwind journey both physically and emotionally. Angel is a hijabi wearing teen who has devoted herself to being part of The Ark's fandom and it has given her everything she loves - her friend Juliet, her dreams and her place in the world. Whilst Jimmy owes everything he has to The Ark and it has let him play in the band with his friends, Rowan and Lister, which is all he's ever dreamed of doing. But dreams don't always turn out the way you think, and when Jimmy and Angel are unexpectedly thrust together they find out how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be. This book was such a great read that is one of those that is hard to review without giving spoilers but trust me it's such a rollercoaster. And as always with Alice Oseman's books it is filled with amazing representation, this one has the most perfect lqbtq+ rep, specifically trans, gay and bisexual, and religion rep with Christian and Muslim main characters. Overall, I highly recommend reading this book!
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All the Wicked Games by Lauren North

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challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

⚠️ TW: mental health, alcoholism, drug abuse, assault, suicide attempt, murder ⚠️ This book was an absolute mind blower! 🤯 This book follows best friends Cleo and Rachel who spend their evenings pretending to be people they're not and inventing elaborate stories for escape the monotony of their real lives. They think it's all harmless fun, until they play their game with the wrong person. And five years on, Cleo is still struggling to come to terms with the night that destroyed her friendship with Rachel and almost cost them their lives. Then she receives a text saying Rachel is missing and she knows there is only one person to blame. Wracked with guilt from failing Rachel the last time they were in danger, Cleo races to find her friend. But could the past be repeating itself? Wow this book had me hooked from the beginning and I could have easily binged it in a single sitting! I absolutely loved everything about it from the alternating pov's between Cleo and Rachel to the alternating timelines from 5 years ago and now which weaved such a great storyline leaving a trail of breadcrumbs for you to piece together. It's one of those books that is hard to review without giving spoilers but it is such a great fast paced, enthralling read that will keep you guessing until the very end. The only reason I dropped it down a star is because I didn't feel the characters had much depth, in particular Cleo and Rachel, so at times I did get a bit confused about who I was reading about but in all honesty that could just be a me problem but it did effect the flow a little. Overall though I loved this read and highly recommend it!
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The Dinner Guest by B P Walter

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

⚠️ murder, drug abuse, assault ⚠️ If you're looking for a page turner of a domestic thriller filled with love, lies and murder then you need to add this to your tbr! This book follows Matthew and Charlie the seemingly perfect married gay couple, and their son, Titus, who all lead the picture perfect life of the rich in London. However nothing is ever as it seems through the filtered lens of social media. And when they meet Rachel in a Waterstones one day and Matthew invites her to join his book club their life starts to lose its flawless appearance as cracks begin to show until one fateful night over dinner their party of 4 suddenly becomes a party of 3. This book was so incredibly gripping and well paced that I would have happily binged it in a single day if I could. Everything about it is so well written with an amazing plot and deeply complex characters that all help to weave a dark web of lies, secrets and deceit within this polished world of opulence. And just when you think you've figured everything out another bombshell of a twist is dropped that will keep you questioning everything and everyone you thought you knew right up until the end. Overall, I highly recommend this book and I can't wait to read more by this author!
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My Other Husband by Dorothy Koomson

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dark emotional funny mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

⚠️ TW: racism, grooming, paedophilia, murder, sexism, misogyny, harassment, mental health, rape ⚠️ This was a really good slow burner that hits you with twists and turns when you least expect it. This book follows Cleo Forsum, a bestselling novelist turned screenwriter who has found huge successes with her tv adaptation series of 'The Baking Detective'. But now she has decided to walk away from it all including her husband, Wallace, before her past secrets catch up with her. However, as she drafts her final ever episode her life turns upside down and people she knows start getting hurt and it soon becomes clear that someone is trying to frame her for murder and she thinks she knows why. But she cannot prove her innocence without confessing about her other husband. This book was definitely a slow burn for me but when it got going with the twists and turns it really was an attention grabber and kept you hooked right until the end. I loved the alternating timelines that helped build a picture of the complex relationships between the characters over the years but out of all of them I think I loved Lola the most with her witty attitude and sass. Despite all of this, the pacing of the story did throw me off a bit as it didn't really hook me until a good half way through and because of this it made the big twists, turns and ending feel quite rushed. Overall, it was a really good read and if you like the slow simmering burner style of books then this one is for you.
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The Black Mountain: Quick Reads 2022 by Kate Mosse

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adventurous tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I chose this book ages ago to try something different but unfortunately it just wasn't for me. This book is set in 1706 and follows Ana, a young Spanish woman, who lives in a small town on the north-west coast of Tenerife with her mother and twin younger brothers. The town is in the shadow of a mighty volcano, which legend says has the devil living inside it. However, there has been no eruption for thousands of years and no one believes it is a threat. One day, Ana notices that the air feels strange and heavy and that the birds have stopped singing. Then while tending to her family vineyard a strange and sudden tremor in the earth frightens her. Very soon it will be a race against time for Ana to help persuade the town that they are in danger and should flee before the volcano erupts and destroys their world. But will they listen? I always say I think short stories are a hit or miss type of format but this one was a big miss for me both in format and the story in general. I wanted to try historical fiction but it wasn't for me unfortunately and that's fine because if we all liked the same books then life would be boring 🤷🏼‍♀️ Overall, I think for the right person that enjoys this genre, they may like it so please don't let my review put you off but for me if it was a full length book I'd have DNF'd it.
Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

⚠️ TW: murder, childhood trauma, child abuse, suicide, drug use ⚠️ Wow this was one hell of a read and I loved it so much! This book follows Daisy Darker and her family as they prepare for a Halloween family reunion for their Nana's 80th birthday at her gothic home on a tiny tidal island just off the coast of Cornwall. And as they prepare to be isolated from the rest of the world for 8 hours during hide tide a storm starts raging outside bringing with it an eerie sense of what is set to be a night no one will ever forget. When at the stroke of midnight a family member is found dead and an hour later another one follows. Trapped on an island where someone is killing them one by one, the Darker's must reckon with their present mystery as well as their past secrets before the tide goes out and all is revealed. This book was one of my most highly anticipated reads of the year and it certainly didn't disappoint! It is a very slow burn but trust me it's worth it and it really kept my attention throughout to the point where I couldn't stop thinking about it even when I wasn't reading it. The twists and turns were just perfection and it was one of those books where part of me wanted to binge it but another part of me wanted to savour it because I was enjoying it so much. It is beautifully written and incredibly clever with a great dysfunctional family plot that just keeps giving right until the end. Overall, I highly recommend this book and it is definitely one of my favourite books so far this year, if not my top favourite!
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The It Girl by Ruth Ware

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

⚠️ TW: murder, drug use, stalking ⚠️ This is such a dark and addictive twisty thriller and i loved it! This book follows Hannah and her group of friends at the prestigious Pelham College at Oxford University when Hannah finds her roommate and best friend, April, murdered in their room. But 10 years on Hannah is still recovering from this harrowing ordeal and trying to find closure when she begins questioning whether she sent an innocent man to prison. And now she knows she won't stop until she discovers the truth, even if that means questioning her own friends and putting her own life at risk because if the killer wasn't a stranger it could have been someone she knows. This book really had me hooked from the beginning and if I could I would have binged it in one day! I really loved how it was written from Hannah's pov and alternated timelines from before and after to drip feed bits of information and make you question everyone to the point where I thought I'd guessed it but then I was completely shocked by the big reveal at the end. Also the seedy, dark academia vibes were perfect for me. Overall, if you are looking for a read that is dark, thrilling and filled with twists and turns then I highly recommend this one!
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The Retreat by Sarah Pearse

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⚠️ TW: murder, PTSD, harassment, stalking, mentions of historical child abuse ⚠️ Wow Sarah Pearse has done it yet again by writing such an eerie and atmospheric thriller that had me hooked until the very end! This book follows DS Elin Warner as she investigates a seemingly tragic death on Reaper's Rock island at an idyllic wellness retreat that has recently opened with the hopes of laying to rest the island's dark past of once being the playground of a serial killer. However, the longer Elin stays on the island, the more secrets she uncovers. And when another body is found she starts to wonder if history is repeating itself and if the remaining guests will make it home alive. This book really got my heart racing with its unnerving writing that is full of suspense and tension throughout and just when you think you've guessed it yet more information comes to light that completely throws you and makes you question every single character and their motives. I absolutely loved the main plot but also really enjoyed getting into Elin's mind more following on from The Sanatorium and seeing her development especially surrounding her childhood trauma. Overall, I honestly cannot recommend this book highly enough and it's definitely one of my favourite reads so far this year. I can't wait to see what Elin gets up to next.
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